Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international, independent medical humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, natural disasters, and exclusion from healthcare.

MSF provides assistance based on need, regardless of race, religion, gender, or political affiliation. The organization is guided by the principles of neutrality and impartiality, which apply to all MSF staff.

Position details

Job title: Pharmacy Storekeeper
Employment type: Full-time, 100%
Organization: Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)
Direct report: Pharmacy Manager
Location: Liwale, Lindi

Main purpose of the role

The Pharmacy Storekeeper will execute pharmacy and medical warehouse storage activities to ensure that pharmacy stock remains above the security level and is stored according to recommended conditions, including temperature and humidity requirements.

The role will be performed under the supervision of the Medical Warehouse, for OCA, or Pharmacy Supervisor, and in collaboration with the logistics team.

Responsibilities or duties

The Pharmacy Storekeeper will be responsible for the following duties:

• Supervising material orders and dispatching to ensure rational use of supplies.
• Receiving orders and deliveries, identifying any discrepancies against cargo manifests or other documents, reporting them, and storing materials according to the system in place.
• Ensuring continuous availability of pharmacy and medical stock.
• Maintaining good storage conditions for all medical items in the pharmacy according to pharmaceutical standards.
• Ensuring stock card and software entries are correctly completed.
• Carrying out or participating in regular inventories, including EPREP stock.
• Monitoring stock levels in relation to alarm thresholds, stock-outs, expiry dates, and medicines due to expire within the next six months.
• Preparing orders for different consumption units, including departments, wards, and other units.
• Ensuring proper packaging and dispatching of orders.
• Reporting anomalies or changes in consumption patterns to the Pharmacy Supervisor.
• Informing the Pharmacy Supervisor immediately when stock reaches the alert limit.
• Controlling warehouse facilities to ensure materials are kept in proper storage conditions.
• Monitoring warehouse temperature and ensuring that cold chain products are received, stored, prepared, and transported according to MSF Supply and Cold Chain protocols.
• Ensuring cleanliness of pharmacy premises.
• Working closely with the logistics department to maintain refrigerating equipment.
• Controlling limited warehouse access and ensuring access is restricted to authorized personnel only.
• Ensuring doors and other exits are secured.
• Immediately informing the line manager of any problems, including damage, loss, attempted break-ins, or theft in the warehouse.
• Ensuring items that need to be quarantined, including items under quality alerts, batch recalls, expired items, or damaged items, are removed from stock and safely locked.
• Preparing stock reports and submitting them to the supervisor.

Context-specific accountabilities

The Pharmacy Storekeeper will also be expected to:

• Ensure FEFO and FIFO principles are consistently applied so that medicines with the earliest expiry dates are used first, reducing wastage.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date records of all stock movements, including receipts, issues, and balances, using stock cards.
• Ensure stock records always match the actual physical stock.
• Ensure all incoming medicines and supplies are properly received and verified against delivery documents.
• Verify quantities, batch numbers, and expiry dates of incoming medicines and supplies.
• Report any discrepancies immediately.
• Ensure full compliance with activity SOPs, including order processes and inventory procedures.
• Maintain documentation in a state ready for audit and inspection.
• Ensure timely updates of staff health boxes and vehicle first aid kits.
• Ensure medicines are issued only with proper authorization and documentation.
• Maintain full traceability of stock movements.
• Monitor and regularly record storage conditions in the cold chain zone and inside the pharmacy.
• Immediately inform the supervisor of any deviations in storage conditions.
• Promptly identify expired, damaged, or compromised medicines.
• Remove and quarantine expired, damaged, or compromised medicines in a clearly designated area.
• Record quarantined items in the suspensory ledger.
• Provide timely and accurate reports to the Pharmaceutical Supervisor on stock status.
• Report shortages, overstocking, near-expiry items, and any quality concerns.

Minimum educational qualification

Applicants must have:

• Diploma or certificate in pharmaceutical science.

Languages

Applicants must have:

• Swahili language skills.
• English language skills are desirable.

Knowledge

Applicants must have:

• Computer literacy, including Word, Excel, and internet use.

Required competencies

Applicants should demonstrate the following competencies:

• Results and quality orientation.
• Teamwork and cooperation.
• Behavioural flexibility.
• Stress management.
• Commitment to MSF principles.
• Service orientation.

Experience needed

Applicants must have:

• At least two years of previous experience in a similar or relevant position.
• Previous experience with MSF or other NGOs in developing countries is desirable.

• Supervising material orders and dispatching to ensure rational use of supplies.
• Receiving orders and deliveries, identifying any discrepancies against cargo manifests or other documents, reporting them, and storing materials according to the system in place.
• Ensuring continuous availability of pharmacy and medical stock.
• Maintaining good storage conditions for all medical items in the pharmacy according to pharmaceutical standards.
• Ensuring stock card and software entries are correctly completed.
• Carrying out or participating in regular inventories, including EPREP stock.
• Monitoring stock levels in relation to alarm thresholds, stock-outs, expiry dates, and medicines due to expire within the next six months.
• Preparing orders for different consumption units, including departments, wards, and other units.
• Ensuring proper packaging and dispatching of orders.
• Reporting anomalies or changes in consumption patterns to the Pharmacy Supervisor.
• Informing the Pharmacy Supervisor immediately when stock reaches the alert limit.
• Controlling warehouse facilities to ensure materials are kept in proper storage conditions.
• Monitoring warehouse temperature and ensuring that cold chain products are received, stored, prepared, and transported according to MSF Supply and Cold Chain protocols.
• Ensuring cleanliness of pharmacy premises.
• Working closely with the logistics department to maintain refrigerating equipment.
• Controlling limited warehouse access and ensuring access is restricted to authorized personnel only.
• Ensuring doors and other exits are secured.
• Immediately informing the line manager of any problems, including damage, loss, attempted break-ins, or theft in the warehouse.
• Ensuring items that need to be quarantined, including items under quality alerts, batch recalls, expired items, or damaged items, are removed from stock and safely locked.
• Preparing stock reports and submitting them to the supervisor.
• Ensure FEFO and FIFO principles are consistently applied so that medicines with the earliest expiry dates are used first, reducing wastage.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date records of all stock movements, including receipts, issues, and balances, using stock cards.
• Ensure stock records always match the actual physical stock.
• Ensure all incoming medicines and supplies are properly received and verified against delivery documents.
• Verify quantities, batch numbers, and expiry dates of incoming medicines and supplies.
• Report any discrepancies immediately.
• Ensure full compliance with activity SOPs, including order processes and inventory procedures.
• Maintain documentation in a state ready for audit and inspection.
• Ensure timely updates of staff health boxes and vehicle first aid kits.
• Ensure medicines are issued only with proper authorization and documentation.
• Maintain full traceability of stock movements.
• Monitor and regularly record storage conditions in the cold chain zone and inside the pharmacy.
• Immediately inform the supervisor of any deviations in storage conditions.
• Promptly identify expired, damaged, or compromised medicines.
• Remove and quarantine expired, damaged, or compromised medicines in a clearly designated area.
• Record quarantined items in the suspensory ledger.
• Provide timely and accurate reports to the Pharmaceutical Supervisor on stock status.
• Report shortages, overstocking, near-expiry items, and any quality concerns.

• Computer literacy, including Word, Excel, and internet use.
• Swahili language skills.
• English language skills are desirable.
• Results and quality orientation.
• Teamwork and cooperation.
• Behavioural flexibility.
• Stress management.
• Commitment to MSF principles.
• Service orientation.

• Diploma or certificate in pharmaceutical science.
• At least two years of previous experience in a similar or relevant position.
• Previous experience with MSF or other NGOs in developing countries is desirable.